Dont Tell Me You Love Me
by Nana Sora
Summary: It's been a year since Kurama broke contact with his old child hood friend Momoko Kirijo, but that doesn't mean he's stopped thinking about her. Things don't get any easier for him when a school project reveals Momoko and Hiei know each other.
1. Momoko Kirijo

Snow fell softly over the large city in Japan. In a private high school sat a girl with short, choppy light brown hair; her long bangs hung over one side of her face, covering one of her blue eyes. Her name was Momoko Kirijo. She watched the slow falling snow, thinking back to the last winter. It was the first winter she had spent without her childhood friend Shuichi Minamino. They had been friends since they were seven, until last year during the fall when Shuichi had told her he thought they should stay away from each other. When she had asked him why his only response was "People may get the wrong idea about us." Those words felt like a dagger to her heart. Since then, Momoko stayed away from him.

A couple girls giggled loudly from the other side of the room, catching the brunettes attention. Her eyes turned from the snow outside to the giggling girls that stood in front of the desk of a boy with long red hair. Shuichi smiled at the girls, handing the work book back to them. There was no denying Shuichi was a good looking guy. His long red hair fell down his back, his green eyes were the shade of emeralds, and his smile... Momoko quickly turned her head, trying to ignore the feeling of her heart skipping beats when she thought of his smile.

_He's just a player._ She told herself, turning her attention back to the falling snow.

Kurama, who was known to humans as Shuichi Minamino, glanced at the small brunette that was watching the snow. Momoko had been a close friend of his until a little over a year ago. He regretted it, but he had to do what he could to protect her. After all, he wasn't nearly as close to Maya as he was to Momoko, but that didn't stop the demon Eight Hands from kidnapping her. He felt lucky that nothing had happened to Momoko with all the time they had spent together. Though Kurama would be lying if he said he still didn't worry about her. Since he had ended contact with her, she soon started acting strangely. She used to have long hair that she kept out of her face, she was happy, out going, and was always laughing. But now, Momoko always kept half her face covered, she missed school often, she distanced herself from everyone, and she rarely spoke in class. He wondered if his actions had caused the change in her personality. Or could it have something to do with her mother getting remarried?

"Calm down class." The teacher said as she stood at the desk in front of the class, "Now I'm going to pair you in groups of two for our next project. When I call your names I want you to go sit with your partner."

The class buzzed quietly with chatter, questions of what the project could be.

"Settle down," The teacher said as she looked at her planner, "Now our first pairing is Shuichi Minamino-" There was an outburst of girls volunteering to be his partner, the teacher cleared her throat, "Shuichi Minamino and Momoko Kirijo."

Kurama and Momoko looked at each other in surprise as the volunteering girls whined. Kurama flashed a nervous smile at her as she fought the urge to blush and stuck her tongue out at him before turning her attention back to the window. Kurama blinked for a moment, realizing what had just happened. He fought the urge to laugh, remembering a day when they were younger when she had stuck her tongue out at him and he grabbed her tongue. It was one of the things he had liked about her. She didn't swoon over him, she didn't pretend not to understand something just to talk to him, she was always herself around him.

When the teacher had finished calling out names he got up and took the seat in front of her.

"I guess I should feel honored that the great Shuichi is gracing me with his presence." She said coldly as she turned her attention to him.

"Y-you're still mad." He said nervously.

"No duh!" She spat, "You tell me we can't hang out anymore cause it's giving people the wrong idea and here it is a year later and you're still not dating anyone. If I bugged you that much you should have just said so."

"It wasn't that Momo-chan--"

"Don't call me that!" She growled.

Kurama's frowned as he stared at her. Momoko sighed and looked away.

"Why do you keep your hair in your face now?" Kurama asked as he started to brush her hair out of her face.

Momoko quickly smacked his hand away, "Don't. Just... Just don't do that." She said quietly as she brushed her hair back over her face.

Kurama looked at her in confusion as the teacher began walking around the room, placing an egg on each groups desk. The two looked at the egg curiously. Once all the eggs were passed out, the teacher took her place at the front of the class again.

"Congratulations class, you are now the proud parents of this egg." She smiled, "Class is almost over so I want you all to go home and determine the genetics, appearance, and if you would like, name your egg. You will be responsible for the life of this egg over the weekend. Those who return the egg in tact will get full credit while those who return with just the paper work will get partial credit. Now before you leave I want everyone to grab one of these packets."

The bell rang and the class erupted with chatter about the project and various other subjects.

"Do you want to work on this at your house?" Kurama asked, "It's been a while since I've seen your mom. You have a step dad now too, right?"

"Um m-my place isn't such a good idea." Momoko said as she looked around nervously, "L-lets go to your place."

"Momoko, is everything okay?" Kurama asked as he looked at her with concern.

"I'm fine. Everything's fine." She said as she forced a smile.

"You just seem really different." He said, not believing her smile.

"Well a lot can happen in a year." Momoko said as she gathered her things and picked up the egg. "Can you get the packets?"

The walk to Kurama's house was filled with awkward silence as the two walked through the snow. Momoko shivered slightly, hugging herself through her coat.

"Why do girls have to wear skirts in the winter?" She asked, referring to the uniforms, "It's like they want us to get sick!"

"Its just another block." Kurama said with a smile as he looked at her, "I still live in the same place."

"C-can I ask you something Shuichi?" Momoko said as she stared at the snow covered ground.

"Sure." Kurama said as he continued to watch her.

She stayed quiet until they were in front of his house. She finally worked up the nerve to ask the question she had wondered for a whole year.

"Why did you really break contact with me?" She asked, stopping and looking up at him with sad eyes.

"I, um..." Kurama looked away, unsure of what to say. He wanted to tell her the truth, but he was sure she would think he was crazy, "I'll explain everything later, okay? Lets get warm first."

He lead the way into the house, trying to think of something he could tell her. Shori, Kurama's mother was sitting on the couch reading a magazine as the two walked in. She looked up and smiled brightly.

"Momo-chan? Is that you?" She quickly got up and walked over to the door where the two teens were taking their shoes off.

"Hello Shori-san." Momoko said with a smile as she unzipped her coat.

"Oh Momo-chan it's been so long since I've seen you over here!" Shori exclaimed as her son took the girls coat for her.

"Yea, sorry about that." Momoko said as she returned the hug the woman gave her.

"Why do you have your hair hanging in that pretty face of yours?" Shori asked as she brushed the hair out of her face, revealing a large bruise that covered her eye and part of her face.

Shori gasped as Momoko quickly turned her head and covered her face with her hair again. Kurama stared at her, eyes wide when he saw the bruise.

"Momo-chan, where did you get that bruise from?!" Shori exclaimed, trying to get another look at the bruise.

Momoko backed away, brushing her hair down as she replied, "I-I just got in a fight was all. It's nothing. Shuichi we should probably start that project."

"I..." Shori watched her with a worried expression, "You kids go on upstairs, I'll bring some snacks and drinks up to your room Shuichi."

Kurama looked at Momoko with a concerned expression, _Is she really fighting? _He hesitated for a moment, then lead the way up to his room. Kurama opened the door to find a boy with spiked black hair and red eyes sitting by his window. Before he could react or think of something to tell Momoko, she had seen the boy.

"Hiei?" She looked at the black haired boy curiously, "What are you doing here?"

Kurama looked at her in confusion as Hiei looked from Momoko to Kurama.

"You know him?" Kurama asked, his confusion growing.

"I didn't know you and Kurama knew each other." Hiei said as he stood up.

"Who's Kurama?" Momoko looked at him curiously.

"You're standing next to him." Hiei answered dryly.

"How do you know Hiei?" Kurama asked the brunette again, wondering what would connect the two of them together.

"Why is he calling you Kurama, Shuichi?" Momoko asked, turning her attention to him.

"It's his name." Hiei said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

The three looked around at each other in confusion as Kurama realized he would have to tell Momoko everything.


	2. When Hiei met Momoko

As Momoko stood before Kurama and Hiei, she thought back to the night that she had met Hiei.

The night was hot and humid, Hiei sat on a branch in a large tree, listening to the sounds of the human world.

"Get away from me!" A human girl screamed, catching Hiei's attention.

A small group of three men had been chasing her as she ran towards the tree the fire demon was perched in. Hiei grumbled in annoyance as he started to get up. The human girl tripped and quickly rolled over, trying to scurry away from the men. That's when Hiei noticed something strange, he could feel the spirit energy of one of the humans rise. He looked down and watched as the men stood above the girl as she stared at them with wide, fearful eyes.

"There's no where to run little girl." One of the men said with a smirk.

"Don't worry though," Another said with a grin as he started to unbuckle his belt, "We're going to treat you real nice."

"GET AWAY FROM ME!!" The girl shouted, putting her arms up in defense.

A warm, tingling feeling swirled around her palms as a sudden burst of dark pink light shot from her hands. The men shrieked as the light hit them, burning them as it knocked them back and away from the human girl. The men quickly got up and ran as fast as they could away from the girl, their voices a mix of confusion and fear. The human girl looked down at her hands as she stared at her palms in disbelief. Hiei jumped down from the branch when the men disappeared from sight. The human girl jumped and turned to face him. She quickly got to her feet and put her hands out.

"Back off," She growled as she glared at him, "I'm not afraid to use that pink stuff on you!"

Hiei raised an eyebrow as he stared at the girl, his red eyes blinked slowly. The human didn't break her gaze on the black haired boy. In a flash, Hiei was standing close behind her.

"Don't you think you should know what you're doing before you start making threats?" He said calmly.

The girl yelped, turning quickly as she brought her hand up to hit him. Hiei caught her hand with ease as he blinked again. The human glared at him as she turned slightly and brought her leg up to kick him. Again, Hiei caught her easily. The girl stood awkwardly as Hiei's right hand held her left wrist while his right arm held her left leg close to his body. She swore silently in her head, hating the fact she was shorter than the boy.

"Now what?" He asked, staring at the human as she growled.

"Let me go!" She barked.

"How can such a pathetic human know how to control spirit energy?" Hiei wondered aloud as he kicked her right foot out from under her, letting her fall.

She landed flat on her butt, hissing at the pain as she looked up and glared at him.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" She growled as she got back up.

"I didn't realize you were stupid too." He said dryly as he started to walk away.

"Who the hell do you think you're calling stupid?!" She snapped, picking a pebble off the ground and throwing it at the back of his head.

In a flash, she was pinned to the tree, the red eyed boys face inches from her own.

"In case you haven't notice, I'm a demon." He said, an annoyed tone in his voice.

"D-demon?" She looked at him in surprise.

"Hn." Was his only reply before he disappeared from her sight.

A week had passed before the human and demon would meet again. The human girl was walking though the park after school one day when she noticed him sleeping in the same tree.

"Hey," She said as she looked up at him.

Hiei lazily opened one eye and looked down at her.

"My name's Momoko. Momoko Kirijo."

"Hn."

"Look, I thought about what you said, the whole demon and spirit energy thing." Momoko said as she shifted from one foot to the other awkwardly, "I want you to explain all of it to me."

"Why should I?" Hiei said, closing his eyes again.

There was a long moment of silence before he heard the girls voice again.

"Here." Momoko said as she stood on her toes as best as she could.

Hiei looked down to see her trying to hand him what looked like snow that had been twirled into a point that sat inside a cone. He blinked in confusion.

"What is it?" He asked, sitting up.

"It's ice cream." Momoko said. "Take it."

There was a flash and Hiei was once again sitting on his branch, examining the ice cream cone. Momoko set her bag down against against the tree before she started climbing up to the branch Hiei was on..

"What's it do?" Hiei asked.

"You eat it." Momoko said with a small laugh, "Don't demons have ice cream?"

Hiei looked from the ice cream to the girl, then hesitantly licked the tip. He blinked a couple times, staring at the ice cream.

"It's like sweet snow." He muttered quietly as he took another taste.

Momoko smiled as she carefully sat on the branch next to him, "Do you like it?"

Before Hiei could answer her Momoko's cell phone began to ring. She quickly pulled it out of her pocket and frowned when she saw the number on the screen. She climbed back down out of the tree as Hiei watched her curiously, still eating the ice cream.

"I've got to go." She said quietly as she picked up her bag, "I'll be back, okay?"

Hiei watched her run off until she was out of site. When he had finished the ice cream he made himself comfortable on the branch once again. He thought for a long while if he would wait for her to come back, he licked the taste of the ice cream from his lips then decided to wait. As time went by Hiei began to have an unexplainable feeling of anxiousness. It was late and Momoko still hadn't come back. Hiei left his tree and began to fallow the direction the human girl had gone.

It wasn't long until Hiei found her sitting below a tree outside a house. He jumped into the large tree and saw that she was crying softly. The front door clicked open and Hiei pushed himself into the shadows. A small woman with dark brown hair stepped out and motioned for Momoko to come inside. Hesitantly, Momoko got up and fallowed the woman inside. Hiei stared at the front door for a few minutes, then flinched when a light came on near his hiding spot. Hiei realized he was near a bedroom window. Momoko's bedroom window. He climbed to a different branch, staying in the shadows, as he tried to see better in the tiny room.

Momoko opened her window, pausing when she thought she saw something. She stared into the shadows as Hiei stayed perfectly still. Hiei could see her lip had been broken open and she had a large bruise on the side of her face. Hiei watched her as she shrugged and turned her attention back to her room. Slowly, the fire demon made his way to the girls window.

"What happened?" Hiei asked, sitting on the window seat.

Momoko jumped as she turned to face him, "What are you doing here?!"

"You said you would come back." He said, "I got impatient."

Momoko stared at him for a moment, then shook her head as she turned off her light.

"Look, I'm tired." She said as she crawled into her bed with a sigh.

"How left those marks?" He asked.

Silence was his only reply.

"I'll show you how to control your spirit energy." Hiei said.

Momoko sat up and looked at him in surprise.

"You don't know how to fight, do you?" He said, staring at her.

"I never had to before." Momoko said as she hugged her knees to her chest.

"I'll teach you then." He said, "My name's Hiei."

There was a loud bang on Momoko's door as an angry voice bellowed, "KEEP IT DOWN IN THERE!"

Momoko flinched and looked back to Hiei, but he had disappeared into the shadows again.

A few months had passed and Hiei had began to wonder why he stayed with this human. She had learned quickly how to control her energy and she had already learned the basics of fighting. So why did he stay with her? Why did she stay with him? He had done what he said he would do, so why did it seem so difficult to leave?

"Is something wrong Hiei?" Momoko asked, looking up from her text book.

She had been studying on her bed while he sat on the window seat. Hiei was quiet for a moment.

"Why do you stay with me?" He asked.

"What do you mean?" She looked at him in confusion.

"Never mind." He said before disappearing.

He didn't appears again until later that night. To his surprise, there was a blanket and a pillow spread out across the window seat like a bed with a tray that had a plate of food and a cold mug of hot chocolate sitting on it. There was a note sitting on the tray,

_"I know you sleep in the tree sometimes, that cant be that comfy. So if you want to sleep in my room you can. I've been thinking about your question and I don't know. Everyone has at least one person that cares about them, maybe I'm just your person? Maybe you're my person? I dont know. Thats as good of an answer as I can give."_

Hiei read the not a second time then looked over to Momoko's bed. The human girl was sleeping quietly, laying on her belly as she nuzzled her pillow. Her tank top had rose in the back during her sleep, revealing several scars along her back. Hiei carefully moved the tray of food as he stepped into the room. He stared at the human girls sleeping face, his eyes softening for a moment.

_My person huh?_ He thought to himself as he watched her sleep for a moment.

Momoko muttered something in her sleep and rolled over, nearly falling out of her bed. Hiei gently moved her over before going back to the plate of food.


	3. Can I stay here?

Kurama looked around his room awkwardly before he pulled out the chair by his desk, offering it to Momoko. The girl hesitantly sat in the chair and Kurama sat at the end of his bed while Hiei remained on the floor under the window.

"Well, I suppose I should start from the beginning." The red head said as he started to explain how he came to the human world.

He explained how he had planed to leave, but found that he had gotten attached to his human mother and stayed. He explained how the demon Eight Hands had kidnapped Maya and how he felt he was lucky that nothing had happened to her since they had spent much more time together.

"...I tried to use the pollen of forgetfulness on you." Kurama continued, "It's a partial amnesia. But it never worked on you."

"Wait, so you were going to just erase my memory of you?" Momoko looked at him in disbelief.

"That was the plan." Kurama said, "As I said though, for some reason it didn't work on you."

"Geez Shu... Kurama," Momoko sighed as she stood up, "If you were so worried about me why didn't you teach me how to fight?"

"T-the thought never crossed my mind." He said as he stared at her in surprise.

"Why? Cause I'm a girl?" Momoko asked defensively as she put her hands on her hips, "Hiei didn't even know me and _he_ taught me how to fight!"

"Keep me out of this." Hiei grunted, turning his attention to her.

"It has nothing to do with your gender." Kurama said with a nervous smile.

He remembered a day when they were in grade school and Momoko had beaten up a boy who had told her she was stupid because she was a girl. The subject of genders had always been a subject that would easily make the human girl mad.

"I just wasn't sure if I would be able to protect you." Kurama said, instantly regretting he had.

"Protect me?!" Momoko exclaimed, glaring at him.

She grabbed a piece of paper from the desk, rolling it in a ball before she threw it at him.

"You should know me better than that!" She nearly shouted.

The small paper ball bounced off the boys head and landed in his lap as he blinked. Kurama snickered, the snicker quickly becoming a small laugh as he covered his mouth. Hiei arched an eye brow at the red heads laughter. Although Momoko was still feeling irritated, she couldn't help but laugh at the situation. Of all things, why did she throw a ball of paper at him?

_They're crazy. _Hiei thought as he looked from one to the other.

There was a knock at the door, a sound that made Hiei disappear. Shori poked her head into the room and smiled.

"I made something warm for you two to drink." She said as she walked in with the two mugs on a tray with a small plate of cookies.

"Thank you Shori!" Momoko beamed as the woman set the tray on the desk.

"I bet you still have a sweet tooth like you did when you and Shuichi were kids." Shori smiled.

"A-a bit." Momoko said as a small blush crossed her cheeks.

"Why don't you join us for dinner?" Shori offered.

"R-really?" Momoko's eyes brightened at the thought of a home cooked meal.

_When was the last time I ate home cooking?_ Momoko thought, unable to remember.

"Of coarse," Shori nodded, "It will be nice, right Shuichi?"

"Yes," Kurama smiled, "It's been a while since you've had dinner with us."

"Okay, I'll stay then!" Momoko said with a grin.

Kurama smiled, it had been a long time since he had seen Momoko this happy. She seemed like her old self. Shori waved to the two teens as she left and made her way to the kitchen again. Hiei appeared in the room again and looked at the two.

"Your mom always had the best cooking." Momoko said with a smile as she picked up a cookie.

Kurama nodded as he and Momoko began exchanging stories of when they were younger. Hiei sat quietly and listened, taking a sip of Momoko's hot chocolate when she offered it. He had never seen Kurama look so amused; and Momoko, he had never seen her laugh or smile as much as she did now.

_She has a nice smile, _Hiei thought to himself as she watched the girl laugh at a face Kurama had made.

"…And then there was that time you got stuck in the tree." Kurama chuckled.

"I wasn't stuck!" Momoko exclaimed, her eyes wide as she put the mug down.

"Oh I'm sorry," He said, "I suppose you were just hugging that branch as if your life depended on it because you thought it was lonely?"

A small pout appeared on Momoko face as she tried to think of an excuse.

"Okay, fine, I was stuck." She finally said as she laughed quietly, "But hey that wasn't anything like the time you-"

Momoko was cut short by the sound of her cell phone ringing. Her smile disappeared as she stared at the ringing phone for a moment. Hiei glanced from the phone to the girl. He noticed that whenever that phone rang Momoko would start to act strangely.

"Momoko?" Kurama stared at her with a concerned expression.

Momoko picked up the phone and looked at the screen. The color slowly faded from her face as she answered the phone.

"Hello?" He voice sounded timid as her eyes darted nervously around the room.

She flinched at the voice on the other end but she never said a word. When she finally put the cell phone down she got up and bowed to the boys who stared at her in confusion.

"I've got to go, I'm sorry!" She said before she ran out of the room.

"Wait! Momoko!" Kurama quickly got up and followed her out of the room.

Hiei leapt out to the tree that stood outside Kurama's bed room. He didn't have to ask who could scare Momoko this much. He knew it was her step-father.

He thought back to a night when he had come to her room to find her crying, covered with bruises and dried blood on her face. The only thing that had stopped him from killing the man responsible was Momoko's clinging and her plea.

"Please don't kill him Hiei!" Momoko sobbed as she shifted onto her knees on her bed, "My mom loves him. For some god damned reason she loves him and I'm scared of what she'd do if he was gone!"

"Look what he did to you!" Hiei growled, "Is she that stupid to let him do this to you?"

"I know it's not right and I know it's not fair," Momoko looked up to him, tears streaming down her face and mixing with the dried blood, "But I'm scared! Not for me but for her! Hiei she'd die if he left! She would kill herself!"

"_You'll_ die if he lives!" Hiei barked.

He had started to turn when Momoko suddenly clung to him, bringing the two of them to the floor. Hiei growled as he sat up. Momoko's arms locked around his waist as she clenched her fists into his coat.

"Hiei please!" Momoko begged, "I just need to finish high school then I'm out of here! It's just a couple of years! If that's all it takes to keep my mom alive then I'll take it. Please Hiei! Please! Don't kill him! I don't want my mom to die! She's all I have!"

Momoko sobbed heavily in the fire demons lap as he sighed. _You have me too… _He thought as he looked down at her.

"Fine." He said as he lifted her off his lap.

He moved so his back was against her bed as he held her close to him. Momoko clutched his jacket as she sobbed into his chest.

"Momoko!" Kurama exclaimed as he ran down the stairs.

"I'm sorry!" She said as she slipped on her shoes.

"What's going on?" Shori rushed out of the kitchen and looked at the two teenagers in confusion.

"I'm sorry!" Momoko said again as she quickly ran out the door and into the snow.

"Momoko wait!" Kurama shouted as he started to fallow her, the snow melting into his socks.

He caught a glimpse of Hiei leaving the tree before he heard his mother.

"Shuichi stop!" Shori said as she stood in the door frame, "Let her go."

"M… Mother…?" Kurama turned and looked at her.

"Please come back inside." Shori said as she looked at her son with pleading eyes. "I think we need to talk."

When Hiei knew he was out of Kurama's mothers sight he dropped down in front of Momoko.

"Hiei plea-"

"Come on." Hiei said as he picked her up, "I can get you there faster."

"T-thank you." Momoko said as she clung to him when he started to run.

"Hn." Was his only reply.

Hiei began to jump from roof top to roof top until he finally landed at Momoko's door step. Hesitantly Hiei sat her down. He knew what would happen to her, it took everything he had to keep from killing her step-father, but he didn't want to see Momoko crying like she was that night she begged him not to do anything.

Momoko gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before she ran inside the house. Hiei blinked a couple times as he held his cheek in surprise. He quickly jumped into the tree as he still held his cheek. _Why in the world did she just do that? _He thought to himself.

A couple hours passed and Momoko hadn't come up to her room yet. Hiei sat anxiously in the tree, watching Momoko's window as he waited for the light to click on. There was a loud clatter in the house and the front door suddenly burst open.

"Get out of here!" A man bellowed as he shoved Momoko out into the snow.

"Mom please!" Momoko sat in the snow as tears streamed down her face. "Please don't let him do this!"

"You shouldn't have hit him Momoko…" A small voice came from the house.

"Mom!" Momoko shouted as the man came out into the snow.

The man grabbed her by the back of her uniform and dragged her through the snow.

"If I _ever _catch you around here again you'll be sorry you were even born!" The man growled as he threw Momoko onto the street.

Hiei gripped his sword, his teeth clenched as he held back the rage that swelled inside him.

"Mom do something! Anything!" Momoko sobbed.

The woman just looked away from her.

"Please!" Momoko begged, "Why are you letting him do this?!"

Silence was her answer as the man stormed back into the house, slamming the door behind him. Momoko sobbed in the street, the cold snow biting at her bare legs. Hiei appeared next to her and picked her up. Her lip was split open, but other than that she didn't seem to have any other bruises. Momoko clung to him as she sobbed.

"H-Hiei," She looked at him, tears streaming down her face, "What do I do? I-I don't know where to go…"

"I'll take you to Kurama's for now." Hiei said.

"Shuichi," Shori said as they sat at the kitchen table, "Do you know how Momo-chan got those bruises?"

"Well…" Kurama looked away for a moment, "I have a theory, but I don't know for sure."

"I think it was from her step-father." Shori said.

Kurama looked at his mother in surprise.

"I thought he would be abusive. It was just the way he looked at Momoko." She said as she looked sadly into her cup of tea, "When I tried to talk to her mother about it, she got offended and refused to invite us to the wedding."

"I see…" Kurama said. "She has been acting strange lately."

"I think it would be best if I called child-" Shori stopped as a knock echoed through the house, "Who in the world would be here at this hour?"

Kurama stood up and walked to the door. He looked out the peep hole then quickly threw the door open.

"Momoko!" He gasped as he saw the tears and bleeding lip.

"I-I'm sorry." Momoko said, trying to choke back her tears, "C-can I stay here tonight?"

"Oh my goodness!" Shori exclaimed as she quickly grabbed a blanket and rushed over to the girl, "Come in! Come in! What happened Momo-chan?"

"I-I got kicked out!" Momoko answered as she burst into tears. "Mom didn't e-even stop him!"

Kurama lead Momoko into the house and onto the couch as Shori wrapped the blanket around her.


	4. Christmas part1

A month had passed since Momoko had come to live with Kurama and the holidays were a couple days away. Despite the fact that Momoko's step father had thrown her out of her own house, Momoko was happier than she had been in a long time. She sat on a chair in the kitchen as Shori pulled a pair of scissors from a drawer.

"Are you ready dear?" Shori asked.

Momoko nodded with a small smile. The bruises she hid behind her hair had finally faded away and Shori offered to cut her bangs out of her face. Shori ran her fingers through the girl's hair as she carefully cut the strands.

"Okay Momo-chan, I'm all done." Shori said with a smile.

Momoko blinked a couple times as she opened her eyes and looked up at the smiling woman.

"Thank you Shori-san." Momoko said, returning the smile.

"You don't need to thank me dear." Shori said, a little laughter in her voice, "It's going to be Christmas soon, do you have any plans with your friends?"

How could Momoko tell Shori her only friends were her son and a demon named Hiei?

"Not really." Momoko said as she got up from the chair and returned it to the table, "Why?"

"Well I was thinking that this year we could have a Christmas party." Shori said, "We could invite some of the neighbors, and some of my co-workers don't have any plans either. I thought it would be fun."

"That does sound like fun mother." Kurama said as he walked into the kitchen, "Don't you think so Momoko?"

Momoko nodded in agreement, smiling, "Um, w-will we get a Christmas tree too?"

"Of course we will." Shori laughed as she started sweeping the hair on the floor into a dust pan, "Why don't we go look for a tree tonight?"

"Really?!" Momoko exclaimed excitedly as her eyes seemed to light up.

"Sure dear." Shori smiled warmly, "We can even decorate it tonight too."

Kurama chuckled as Momoko cheered happily. He had almost forgotten that Momoko had never had a Christmas tree during the holidays. He watched happily as his mother and Momoko chatted about the up coming party.

"Oh Shuichi dear," Shori said as she turned to him, "I think we'll go do our Christmas shopping today too, would you like to come?"

"That's alright mother," Kurama said as he smiled, "I've already gotten you both gifts."

"When did you do that?" Momoko asked in surprise.

"It's a secret." Kurama said teasingly as he placed a finger to his lips.

-----

The days quickly passed until the day of the party finally came. Hiei sat in the guest room, which had became Momoko's room, and watched Momoko curiously. She pulled a narrow, wrapped box out of her closet and handed it to Hiei with a smile.

"Merry Christmas, Hiei." She said as he stared at the box.

Hesitantly, Hiei took the red box with tiny green Christmas trees from the human girl.

"Shuichi already told me that demons don't celebrate Christmas," Momoko said, "But I still wanted to get something for you too."

"What exactly am I supposed to do with this box?" Hiei asked as he examined it.

"You open it." Momoko laughed, "It's a gift."

Hiei stared blankly at her for a moment. No one had ever given him a gift before. Carefully, he tore the paper off and opened the box. Inside there was a black sweater and blue jeans. Hiei blinked a couple times as he stared at the contents of the box.

_Why in the world would I want human cloths? _Hiei thought as he looked up at the brunette.

"I hope I got the right size. Shori's having a party tonight and if you came you could wear those." She said with a smile, "I thought maybe if you had some human cloths you could actually stay in the room when Shori came in. I mean, if Shori knew you came over as much as you do I'm pretty sure she'd let you stay the night so you don't have to keep sleeping in the trees. It's got to be pretty cold out there with all the snow…"

'_She's actually concerned about me.' _Hiei thought as Momoko continued explaining her gift, '_Why does she care so much about me?'_

"Hiei?" Momoko gave him a concerned look, "Do you not like them?"

"Hn…" Hiei looked away, unsure of what to say.

"It's okay if you don't like them." Momoko said with a weak smile, "I could always take them back a—"

"I'll keep them." Hiei said as a knock echoed from Momoko's door.

In a flash Hiei was gone. Shori poked her head into the room and smiled.

"There you are Momo-chan." Shori said, "Come down stairs, Shuichi wants to give you your present."

"Okay." Momoko said with a smile as she fallowed Shori down stairs.

"Merry Christmas, Momoko." Kurama said with a smile as he handed Momoko a large, lumpy looking package.

"What in the world is it?" Momoko asked as she laughed.

"You'll see." Kurama smiled.

They sat in front of the large, glistening pine tree as Momoko started unwrapping the shining green paper. Her eyes widened as her smile widened.

"It's so cute!" She exclaimed as she hugged the large yellow stuffed duck.

"Oh that's right, ducklings were your favorite animal weren't they?" Shori laughed as she brushed her hand over the soft yellow fabric.

"They still are." Momoko smiled, "You actually remembered that Shuichi?"

"Of course I did." Kurama said with a smile, "After all, you loved them so much when we were kids a mother duck chased you around when you picked up one of her ducklings."

"Did that really happen?" Shori asked with a laugh.

"Yes!" Momoko replied with wide eyes, "God I was so scared I ran up a tree and got stuck. If it wasn't for Shuichi I would have been stuck there for hours!"

"She only chased you because she thought you were taking her baby." Kurama chuckled.

The three laughed and talk about the duckling incident more, now and then Kurama would tease Momoko, who would just stick her tongue out at him or playfully push him.

Meanwhile, Hiei was sitting in the denser plot of trees in the park, carefully examining the clothes Momoko had given him. He wasn't sure about these human cloths. He had always worn what he had gotten while living in Makai, the thought of wearing human cloths had never crossed his mind. Though Momoko had seemed so proud of the gift she had chosen for him. Hiei felt a little pain of guilt when he thought of Momoko's expression when she thought he wouldn't keep them. True, it was very different from what he was used to, but he couldn't bring himself to do something he thought would make her sad.

"Damn it," He quietly said as a small smirk crossed his lips, "She actually got to me."

Hiei would never admit it, not verbally at least, but a _human _had actually managed to find a place in his heart. It was something that very few managed to do. With a reluctant sigh Hiei decided to try on the clothes.

'_It's not too bad.'_ Hiei thought as he examined the clothes again.

The sweater was a little snug, yet oddly enough he found it comfortable. The jeans were a little long, but other than that Momoko had done a good job of guessing Hiei's size. It was then that Hiei had an interesting thought. How in the world was he supposed to introduce himself if he didn't find Momoko first?

He was so used to demons. In all honesty, Momoko was the first human he had contact with that he _didn't _kill. Demons were so much different from humans. The best example would have to be the fact of smell. Demons didn't care about smells, in fact they could often tell a variety of things from smell. Humans, on the other hand, were often offended by their smells.

Hiei decided it would be best to watch some humans before going back to Kurama's house.

-----

Later that night, Momoko stood happily by the stair case as she sipped her hot chocolate. She watched as the neighbors and co-workers of Shori chatted happily. Momoko couldn't help but smile as she watched a couple elderly women complementing Kurama about what a handsome young man he was becoming.

Kurama had his long red hair pulled back into a low pony tail that fell down the back of his white turtleneck. Now and then he'd fiddle with something in the pocket of his black dress pants. Momoko smiled to herself as she sipped her hot chocolate again. She did admit Kurama was a good looking guy. Growing up he had always been the class heart throb. There was even one point in time where she had had a crush on him herself.

"What are you thinking about?" Kurama asked with a smile as he came up to her.

"You really are a handsome guy Shuichi." Momoko said with a smile.

A faint pink color rose in the red heads cheeks as he heard her comment.

"Th-thank you." He said with a surprised look, "Where did that come from?"

Momoko shrugged and laughed, "I don't know, you wanted to know what I was thinking."

"Yes, well," Kurama replied with a soft smile, "You look very pretty yourself. That dress looks good on you."

Momoko gave him a surprised look, blushing as she blinked a couple times. Momoko wore a long sleeved maroon dress that fell slightly off her shoulders and black tights.

"I have something I've been meaning to give you." Kurama said as he pulled a velvet black choker from his pocket.

A small, silver rose sat in the center of the black fabric.

"It's beautiful Shu-kun!" Momoko clapped her hand over her mouth as she blushed deeply.

Kurama couldn't help but laugh at her expression and the fact that she was nearly as red as her dress.

"It's been a long time since you've called me that… Momo-chan," Kurama smiled brightly.

"Y-yea well…" Momoko trailed off as she looked away, her face still a bright red.

Kurama leaned closer to her, gently clasping the necklace around her neck. He smiled and straightened up, watching the small brunette.

"Thank you," Momoko said with a smile as she gently touched the rose.

Kurama's smile widened and that's when he noticed the mistletoe hanging above Momoko's head.

"Momo-chan," He said with a small chuckle, "Look where you're standing."

Momoko looked at him curiously and looked to where he was pointing.

"What's that?" Momoko asked.

"It's mistletoe." Kurama replied.

"What's it for?" Momoko asked as she looked at him curiously.

"Well," Kurama said, "When someone's standing under it, you kiss them."

"Kiss?" Momoko looked at him as she blushed again.

Kurama nodded and smiled softly, "May I kiss you Momoko?"


End file.
